Biography:
Yunxin (Joy) Jiao, a graduate of Miami Palmetto Senior High School, is simultaneously a passionate biologist, artist, and musician. She is one of the 20 United States Biology Olympiad 2008 finalists, having received the highest score in the nation for both the open and semifinal exams. As the captain and founder of her school's JETS team for the National Engineering Design Challenge, Joy helped the team design an assistive device for the cognitively challenged in the work place, which placed top 18 nationally in the competition. During 2007 and 2006 she interned at the University of Miami, participating in two research projects on secondary spinal cord injuries and optical coherence tomography, the latter of which earned her standing as an Intel Science Talent Search Semifinalist. She was a member of her school's National Science Bowl team in 2007, which placed 1st in Florida and 4th in the nation. In the past four years she also received numerous awards for mathematics, including several 1st place recognitions for geometry and calculus at local competitions. Joy has also been a dedicated artist throughout high school. From 2006-2008, she painted over 750 square feet of murals in her community for elementary schools and Kristi House, a nonprofit organization for abused children, as well as independently organized two arts and crafts festivals that generated over $400 for Kristi House. For her community service efforts, Joy was awarded a $500 grant from GameStop and an Honorable Mention in the Silver Knight Awards 2008. She has played the violin for eight years, and has been the concert mistress of the school orchestra for two. She plans to major in biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology this fall.

Acceptance Speech

I would like to thank the members of the Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association for awarding me the 2008 scholarship. Because of this scholarship, I will be able to participate immediately in research without worry about time that could have been spent earning money at a job. I have been passionate about biotechnology since a very young age, and being able to attend MIT is the culmination of my aspirations. I hope to become a biomedical researcher, but at the same time focused on global development, and SAPA's commitment to facilitating scientific exchange between China and the US is an important part of that. Thank you again for your support, and I look forward to a future of innovation and advancement with SAPA.

Biography:
Richard Li , a graduate of Monte Vista High School in Danville, California, has pursued a variety of passions while maintaining excellent grades at a competitive high school. His academic honors include recognition as a 2008 National Merit Scholarship recipient, AP Scholar with Distinction, and a four year honor roll student. Richard has spent every summer of high school actively involved in scientific research and has presented his research on novel anticancer drug delivery and cancer diagnostic techniques at a multitude of science fairs-winning honors from Siemens semifinalist to Intel Science Talent Search semifinalist to a Grand Award and 3 special awards at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. In addition to his interests in science, Richard is involved in a wide range of community service activities. He has served as the president of the Youth Action Council, a local teen community service organization, for two years, winning 4 President's Service Awards for his commitment to volunteer work. Additionally, he co-founded a nonprofit organization called the Sunshine Youth Council that provides free English classes for Chinese immigrant seniors. His work with the Sunshine Youth Council was recognized with a Prudential Spirit of Service Award. Next fall, Richard plans to major in life sciences at Harvard University and continue his contributions to cancer research.

Acceptance speech:

As the son of two successful Chinese-American pharmacists, I became familiar with the Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association at a young age. As a result, I have witnessed up close the organization's incredible growth-from a small group of individuals with an important vision to an international leader in promoting pharmaceutical science and communication. I am extremely honored to be recognized as a scholarship recipient by such an extraordinary organization. I look forward to upholding and spreading the powerful ideals of SAPA in the future-the ideals of discovery, global cooperation, and scientific communication.